Receiver for pneumatic post systems with horizontal capsule ejection



1953 w. K. SINDZINSKI 2,647,705

RECEIVER FOR PNEUMATIC POST SYSTEMS WITH HORIZONTAL CAPSULE EJECTION Filed Nov. 30, 1950 INVE N T0 R WILL Y K. Sl/VDZ/NSK/ 0 s i; QTTORNE Patented Aug. 4, 1953 Ire noRIzQNr L CAPSULE. ant ior Willy K. Sindzin'ski, Berlin,

by mesne assignments, ard, Electric Corporation, N ew- York, corporation otDelaware Germany, assignor,

to International Stand-.

N. Y., a

Application-November 30, 1950; SerialNo. 198,302- In Germany October 7, 1948" 5.Glaims. Cl. 243-23) This invention relates to pneumatic tubecone. veyer systems andz entainsmore-particularly to receivers or terminals for receiving. the; carriers.

used in such: systems.

The receiver. according to the invention con.-.

sists. of a cylindrical housing provided. with; a rotating receivingelementhaving-a chamber for receiving one of the carriers; coming through. av

pneumatic tube connected to the receiver, and:

one or more air passages, the receiving element, after receiving a. carrier, being rotated 90? by carrier-operated: switching. means. Upon. rotate. ing, the receivingelement by-passes. the suction and, when. it. reaches its. final position, it. dis.

charges. the. carrier from; the horizontally post-.- tioned chamber through the agency. of switch.-.

ing means. thatco'me into.play at that moment, andthen returns to its homeposition.

A receiver, according to the present invention, can, in principle, be used as a switch, if one or more additional lengths of tubing are providedon thehousing at various angles. to each other and to the discharge direction. The switches can then be operated in thewell-known manner by remote control means orbymarking meansim. rporat d. n th arri r themse v s- A. h r descr ption of. t enew-pn uma ictub system and its operation will now be given with reference to the appended figures, in which:

Fig. 1 discloses in plan view and partly in section a pneumatic tube carrier receiver in accordance with my invention, in unoperated condition;

Fig. 2 shows the same receiver in side elevation viewed from the left hand side of Fig. 1; and

Figs. 3 and 4 correspond to Figs. 1 and 2 respectively, but show the receiver in operated condition with the rotary receiving element rotated through 90 from its position in Figs. 1 and 2.

The receiver consists of a cylindrical housing I, in which a rotary receiving element 2 is rotatably mounted. At the bottom of the housing is connected the pneumatic inlet tube 3. Suction tube 4 is connected to the side of the housing and in line with the axis of the rotary receiving element. The front of the rotary receiving element has a chamber 5 for receiving the carrier. At the back of the receiving element are a pair of air passages 6 and 6a forming a quarter of a circle. The carrier discharge opening is covered by a flap 1, in front of which there is a trough 8 attached to the housing. References 9 and H) denote electric control contacts and II and [2, the carriers.

" is no connection with the atmosphere.

The receiver operates as. follows:

When the receiver is in the unoperated position, as shown inFigs. 1 and2, there isa vacuum in tubes, vertical chamber 5, connecting chamber it at the top of the housing, air passage 6 in the rotary receiving element, and suction tube 4. A carrier ll, forced along by the vacuum, moves from tube3- into chamber 5 until;

it strikes against stop 9', which is also designed as an electrical contact adapted to close an associated electric circuit, not shown. The suction in tube 4; prevents the carrierfrom sliding back into the tube 3. When contact 9, is operated, an electrically controlled driving mechanism, indicated generally at 9:1, turns receiving element, 2;

through in a counterclockwise direction to assume a position asviewed in liig The ele c.

trically controlled driving mechanism maybe of any suitable known type, and is no part of the invention per se.

When the rotary receiving element rotates, communication between the chamber 5 and; the suction tube 4,. is broken; the chamber itself, however, remaining under a vacuum, since there The vacuum is then by-passed and acts along; the following path tube 3,. lower connecting. chamber l4 of the housing, which is in communication with the tube through slots in its wall, air passage 6, suction tube 4 (see Fig. 3, left hand side).

As soon as the chamber 5 is turned to the horizontal position, that is to its end position, a valve [5 is actuated by the edge I la of carrier II as it is rotated by element 2, the end [5a of valve l5 being urged outwardly by the carrier as it contacts the inner wall of the housing edge during its movement from the vertical to the horizontal position. The opening of valve I5 admits air at atmospheric pressure into the chamber. Flap 1, which was held against the housing by suction, is released and is free to open outwardly. Owing to the sloped chamber wall 5a (see Fig. 4), the carrier rolls against the flap, which opens under the weight of the former, rolls into trough 8 and thereby actuates contact III. This re-starts up the receiving element driving mechanism which rotates the receiving element and, which turns the receiving element either backward or forward to restore it to its initial position, and thus prepares the receiver for the receipt of another carrier. By providing the two air passages 6 and 6a, the rotary element 2 may be rotated in 90 steps in the same direction without the necessity of reversing the direc- 3 tion of rotation after a carrier has been ejected from the chamber. It will be observed that for each 180 of rotation either the passage 6 or 6a will couple tubes 3 and 4 together.

If a number of carriers arrive at the receiver in close succession, as shown in the figures by carriers H and I2, only one carrier is admitted and rotated in the receiver. Owing to the par ticular shape of the receiving element, the carrier immediately following the one admitted is pushed back a short distance so as to allow the receiving element to rotate freely. The wall of the receiving element restrains the following carrier until chamber 5 has'returned to its vertical position. The resulting vacuum draws the carrier into the chamber. The. carriers are thus surely and automatically separated without the use of any special separating means and valves.

What I claim is:

1. A receiver for a pneumatic tube system com prising a housing, a rotary receivingelement positioned in said housing, a carrier receiving chamber in said receiving element, aninlet pipe connected to said housing at a first point in alignment with said chamber when said rotary receiving element is in an unoperated position, a suction pipe connected to said housing at a second point angularly displaced with respect to said first point, an air duct within said receiving element extending between a first point and a second point in the periphery thereof separate from said chamber, a junction chamber associated with said housing and forming a connection between said chamber and one end of said air duct when said receiving element is in unoperated position, the other end of said duct then being in alignment with said suction pipe whereby a carrier entering said inletpipe will be drawn into said chamber, the relationship of said parts being such that when said receiving element is subsequently rotated to a different angular position in said housing said air duct will form a connection between said inlet pipe and said suction pipe and suction on said chamber will be cut ofi, and a normally closed discharge opening in the side of said chamber.

2. A receiver in accordance with claim 1, further comprising an electrical contact for energizing a driving mechanism for rotating said element, said contact disposed adjacent one end of said carrier receiving chamber in position to be operated by a carrier arriving in said chamber.

3. A receiver in accordance with claim 1, further comprising an ejection flap and a normally closed suction relieving valve, said housing having a wall with an aperture therein of a size capable of permitting passage of a carrier therethrough, said aperture in register with said chamber when said chamber is rotated to a horizontal position, said aperture connecting the outer atmosphere-with the interior of said housing, said flap normally held closed against said aperture by the suction, said valve mounted through the wall of said housing and adapted to be opened by a carrier being rotated by said rotating element, whereby air at atmospheric pressure is admitted to said chamber permitting said flap to open.

4. A receiver in accordance with claim 3, further comprising an inclined trough attached to the outside of said housing, at a point below said flap, a second electrical contact disposed along said trough for energizing a driving mechanism for rotating said element to initial position, said contact adapted to be actuated by a carrier passing in said trough after ejection through said aperture.

5. A receiver in accordance with claim 3 wherein said receiving element has a slopingwall so that when said element is rotated to the horizontal position, a carrier therein will roll "out of said chamber through the aperture in the wall of said housing.

'WILLY K. SINDZINSKI.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

